Gun supplier in 2010 killing gets suspended sentence

An Uncasville man who admitted supplying a gun used in a 2010 Norwich killing will avoid prison under the terms of a plea bargain.

JOHN BARRY

An Uncasville man who admitted supplying a gun used in a 2010 Norwich killing will avoid prison under the terms of a plea bargain.

Samuel Gomez, 21, was sentenced Friday in New London Superior Court to a five-year suspended sentence and three years’ probation on a charge of hindering prosecution.

According to authorities, on the night of Aug. 26, 2010, Gomez supplied a .45-caliber handgun to Darnell Moore, who then used it to kill Namdi Smart outside Smart’s Lake Street home.

Moore was convicted of murder at a trial in December. He was sentenced in March to 53 years in prison.

Gomez testified at Moore’s trial that he indeed supplied the gun, gave Moore a ride close to the scene, then drove him away and disposed of the gun by giving it to someone else. The gun has not been found.

Prosecutors did not promise Gomez before he testified that he would be treated leniently. The plea deal was carried out in March, a couple of weeks after Moore was sentenced.

He was originally charged in June 2011 with carrying a pistol without a permit in addition to the hindering prosecution charge.

“The state feels the sentence is warranted under these circumstances,” Assistant State’s Attorney Paul Narducci said at Gomez’s sentencing.

Judge Susan Handy, who sentenced Gomez, admonished him for not working. “Get a job. You’re 21 years old, and you’re doing nothing. Nothing,” she said. “You clearly need to get your act together and make better choices.”

The judge imposed an extra condition of Gomez’s probation to reinforce her statement. “If you are not working, you are to complete 40 hours of community service a month,” Handy told him.